Agent Spotlight: Don Yee

Don Yee woke up this morning and saw his name in a variety of papers with the quote, “Tom and his family are excited about the pregnancy, and want to thank everyone who has shown support, and particularly for their consideration of Tom’s privacy.” To the Sports Agent world; however, Mr. Yee is more than just a spokesman for Tom’s expected child.

Don Yee graduated from the University of Virginia Law School in 1987 and has gone on to be a very successful agent (for more on UVA Law, check out a recent post: Virginia Law – No Longer A Virgin). He associates Charlottesville to Mars. While it may not have been Mars, it was very different than his undergrad school (UCLA).

Don Yee is one of the heads over at Yee & Dubin LLP, which is a talent agency that represents athletes, coaches, and broadcasters. It is located in Los Angeles, CA. Since 1995, Yee has represented Tom Brady, Ty Detmer, Aaron Taylor, Bryant Young, etc.

Don Yee is definitely a risk-taker. He is a first generation Asian-American in his family, and his mother cannot speak a word of English. Yee has been so radical to even back a no-draft system when the idea was floating around the NFL in 2002 [It’s time for a change].

Before Tom Brady’s recent child-related news story, I had never heard of Don Yee. Most likely, you had never heard of him either. It goes to show you that very few agents are glorified in this industry for what the public believes to be good qualities. Agents make the news when their clients mess up, or when they represent over 90 NFL players in any given season.

-Darren Heitner

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Darren Heitner

Darren Heitner is the creator of Sports Agent Blog. He is the owner of the South, Florida-based HEITNER LEGAL, P.L.L.C., which is a law firm that focuses on transactional, intellectual property and litigation work with a heavy emphasis on sports and entertainment issues. He is also the founder of Sports Agent Blog and an author of 2 books published by the American Bar Association -- How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know (1st and 2nd Editions). Heitner contributed to Forbes and Inc. for many years.